A while back, BabyNames.com chatted with Amanda Matta, a popular royal commentator, to dive into the storied history of royal names around the world, from the British Monarchy to ancient Persia. Whether you’re an avid royal watcher or someone who only thinks of kings and queens in fairy tales, you’ll enjoy this royally great list of regal names.
British Royal Name History
With Amanda, we discussed that the official first king of England was named Æthelstan and his brother (the original William and Harry!) was Ælfweard. After the Norman invasion, history started to see a litany of names like Richard and John.
However, many of these royals had nicknames, or epithets — like Bloody Mary or Richard the Lionheart — given to them due to something positive they achieved or some sort of negative association. As Amanda said, in some cases these monarchs “were so bad or had such hilarious SNAFUs happen to them that historians decided to tack that on the end” of their names.
The Anglo-Saxon names often carried similar prefixes across names: there wasn’t just Æthelstan, but also Æthelwulf and Æthelred (whose epithet was “the Unready”).
British Royal Names: Then and Now
We asked Amanda: do the royals have a surname? Yes and no, she said: the Royal Family’s official website says they may be known by the name of the Royal house and/or a surname. The modern royals use the surname Mountbatten-Windsor, which was fabricated. In World War I, the family used the name Saxe-Coburg and Gotha but in 1917, anti-German sentiment led King George V to issue a proclamation to be more in line with the British.
Great Britain has had eight female monarchs: Empress Matilda (known as Empress Maud), Lady Jane Gray, Bloody Mary (Mary I), Elizabeth I, Mary II, Queen Anne, Queen Victoria, and Queen Elizabeth II.
For the men, there have been eight Edwards, eight Henrys, and six Georges.
Modern Shifts in Royal Naming Traditions
While the British royals use many traditional names, as today’s monarchs like Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie choose more unusual names for their children, such as Ernest “Ernie”, this is changing. Even in the 1980s, Princess Anne made waves when she named her daughter Zara.
Amanda also noted that while many of today’s royals have the middle name Diana, we haven’t seen it as a first name. This may be because it’s a “taboo” name due to Princess Diana’s complicated feelings about the monarchy. Or, it may simply be that her shoes are just too big to fill.
Today’s Royal Children
Prince William and Princess Kate‘s children are George, Charlotte, and Louis. We discussed where the French-sounding Louis originated, and it’s believed to come from William’s uncle Louis Mountbatten. Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan chose unique names, too: Archie Harrison and Lilibet Diana.
Royal Names Across the World
French Royal Names
Lothair
Lothair ruled from 954 to 986. This name is a French form of Luther and means “famous warrior.”
Isabeau
Isabeau of Bavaria was the Queen of France from 1385-1422.
Napoleon
Napoleon Bonaparte’s name means “Person from Naples Italy.”
Blanche
Blanche de Castille was the Queen of France by marriage to Louis VIII.
Other French royal names include Hugh, Raul, Eleanor, and Antoinette.
Russian Royal Names
From Russia, we see common regal names like Oleg, Igor, Simeon, Kirill, Catherine, and Anastasia.
Persian Royal Names
Deioces
The name of the first ruler of Media, Deioces means “the lands.”
Phraortes
Phraortes was the kind of Media from 675 to 653.
Cyaxares
Cyaxares was the son of Phraortes and ascended the throne after hish father’s death.
Cassander
Cassander ruled the Macedonian Empire in 350 BCE.
Qabus
Qabus was a Ziyarid ruler from 976-1012.
Darius
With a name meaning “upholder of the good,” Darius ruled from 522-486 BCE.
Xirxes
Xirxes was the son of Darius; the name means “ruler over heroes.”
African Royal Names
There are currently three monarchies on the African continent: Morocco, ruled by Mohammed VI; Eswatini, overseen by Mswati III; and Lesotho, under Letsie III. Additional names include:
Amina
Aminda, Queen of Zaria, was first woman to rule over Nigeria. Throughout her 34-year reign, she never took a husband.
Ranavalona
Ranavalona I ruled Madagascar from 1788 to 1861, fighting colonization.
Other African royal names include Njinga, Nefertiti, and Cleopatra.
East Asian Royal Names
Hideyoshi
A Japanese samurai regarded as the second great unifier of Japan, Hideyoshi means “outstanding and respectable.”
Jimmu
The legendary first Emperor of Japan, Jimmu means “divine warrior.”
Jitō
Empress Jitō was the 41st monarch of Japan, from 686-697. She was the third of eight women who took on the role of empress regnant, reigning in her own right rather than through marriage.
Michiko
Empress Michiko was the Empress consort of Japan as the wife of Akihito until 2019.
Chinese Royal Names
China was ruled by emperors for over 2000 years.
Qin Shi Huang
Qin Shi Huang was the first Chinese emperor, who unified China in 221 BCE and founded the Qin dynasty.
Puyi
The final Chinese emperor, who was overthrown in 1912, had the given name Aisin-Gioro Puyi.
Kangxi
The third Emperor of China was also known as Emperor Shengzu of Qing or his personal name, Xuanye.
Hulü
An empress of the Northern Qi dynasty of China, Hulü’s given name is unknown.
Wanrong
Known as the Empress Consort of Manchua, Wanrong was the consort of Puyi.
Krystin Morgan is a writer, career consultant, and talent acquisition professional living in Seattle, WA with her husband, daughter, and dog. She's been obsessed with names since childhood, when she spent hours with friends poring over baby name books to find the meaning of every name they could think of.
